There are a lot of ways to tweak and process an audio project. EQ, compression, and filters are just some of the tools producers use to improve or alter the overall sound of a mix. One tool that’s been a mainstay for decades in many recording studios is the aural exciter. Aural exciters are used most often to accentuate certain low or high-end frequencies that tend to really catch the human ear. Aural exciters are commonly used towards the end of a signal processing chain to bring the extra clarity and oomph that producers often employ to get the attention of listeners.

Like many things in the audio production universe, there are lots of aural exciters on the market, ranging from under a hundred bucks in price to thousands of dollars per unit. And while it can be good to have a hardware aural exciter in some settings, it’s often just as good to have the software equivalent. That’s what Waves has done with its Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter:

A true groundbreaker, the original Aural Exciter was highly regarded for its ability to increase and enhance presence, brightness, and vibrancy on vocal and instrumental tracks alike. It was even credited as a ‘session player’ on best-selling albums by the likes of Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor, engineered by Val Garay, who worked closely with us on the development of the plugin.

The Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter Plugin is on sale now. It normally retails for $299 but is available for a limited time at the massively reduced price of just $59. Learn more, and purchase the plugin thru the link above.

In today’s modern media production environments, you can never have enough displays. And while it does look super cool to put together a system with multiple high-res monitors, doing that can rack up an impressive price tag pretty quickly. Fortunately, electronics manufacturer Monoprice is here to help creators build their multi-display arsenals. Next week. Monoprice will release its Ultra-Slim Aluminum 27″ UHD IPS 4K display:

The ultra-slim, aluminum bezel houses a Grade A+ IPS glass panel, which is backed by our Pixel Perfect Guarantee. The monitor features two DisplayPort 1.2a inputs, with AMD’s FreeSync technology, and two HDMI® inputs, giving a level of flexibility and connectivity that is unsurpassed.

More details on this Monoprice display:

Features a maximum resolution of 4K@60Hz

Adjustable stand can be removed to allow access to the 100×100 VESA mounting points for mounting to a wall or desk mount

Aluminum bezel houses an Grade A+ IPS glass panel from LG

Features two DisplayPort 1.2a inputs, with AMD’s FreeSync technology, and two HDMI® inputs

Monoprice hasn’t stated an exact date for when these displays will be available for purchase. But a recent e-mail sent by the company stated that they’d be on the market “next week.” The Monoprice Ultra-Slim Aluminum 27″ UHD IPS 4K display will have a retail price of $399.

Recording a multitrack live session, monitoring that session, and mixing it usually requires a bunch of different pieces of gear to get the job done. That’s certainly nothing new and it’s not even that bad if you’ve got a dedicated studio space available when you need it. But it’s not always possible to get access to that perfect combination of dedicated recording space stocked with the right equipment. In those cases, clever producers rely on creative improvisations that might be good enough. But it never hurts, especially in these instances, to be able to simplify things as much as possible.

With the LiveTrak L-12, you can finally mix, record, and monitor with a single piece of gear. It’s the only digital console that lets you mix your live performance and record up to 12 discrete channels – all while providing five individual custom headphone mixes.

If you have even a remote interest in audio production, you’ve learned that compression is usually an important step in the audio mastering process. In recent decades, certain hardware compressors have stood head and shoulders above the rest, becoming invaluable assets to countless producers around the world. Two such pieces of gear are the Fairchild 660 and Fairchild 670 compressors. These units are known for bringing warmth and vibrancy to any final mix that passes thru them. And while these Fairchild compressors may be highly sought-after, they’re not exactly easy to come by. Especially for independent producers working on tight budgets.

From the recording studio to the record lathe, the Fairchild was renowned for its advanced compression techniques and incomparable sound. We’ve collaborated with GRAMMY-winning producer/engineer Jack Joseph Puig (U2, Rolling Stones, Lady Gaga) to capture every distinctive nuance and harmonic detail of the vintage Fairchild 670 device housed in Jack’s own studio.

The PuigChild Compressor plugin is sold and distributed by Waves. The plugin is compatible with digital audio workstations (DAW) running on both macOS and Windows. Supported host DAWs include Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Ableton Live, GarageBand, Reaper, Adobe Audition, and more.

The PuigChild Compressor plugin normally retails for $349 but it’s currently on sale for the remarkable price of only $29. You can purchase the plugin direct from Waves using the link above.

Music and audio producers are always looking for new and exciting sounds to use within their projects. And while there are plenty of options available in terms of free or paid-license sample libraries out there, sometimes it’s best to try and come up with something that’s totally different. That’s where Regroover, a software product from Accusonus, comes in.

Create new sounds from old or simply adjust the volume of individual elements inside a loop. Regroover uses Artificial-Intelligence to extract layers from within your previously recorded beats and samples. Once Regroover analyzes the file, you are able to make your own drum kits and combine them with external sounds to make new beats, loops and your own unique Expansion Kits.

Regroover offers two versions of the application. The full-featured version, Regroover Pro, is now available at a 30% discount. Here are some key features that can be found only in Regroover Pro:

Build your own Expansion Kit with any element inside your loop which makes for rapid-fire MIDI triggering of samples to make new beats and grooves

Create Regroover Projects with both external and found sounds from inside your loops

Grab that magic kick, snare or clap and place it on its own trigger pad.

This special 30% discount on Regroover Pro expires today. If you think Regroover would be beneficial for your next audio project, you can purchase the software here.

You’ve put in the hours and hours of rehearsal time. You’ve dealt with all the drudgeries of booking the gigs. When it’s time to finally get up on stage and show the world what you’ve got, you don’t want to be tied to an instrument cable trailing off behind you.

Live musicians have relied on wireless transmitters to give them complete freedom on stage for years. The concept is pretty simple. Players connect a small cable to a transmitter pack, usually clipped onto a guitar strap, and that transmitter carries the instrument’s signal to a receiver that runs it thru an amplifier and then on to the rest of the house.

And while the concept may indeed be simple, the process of making a wireless transmitter reliable and usable is no easy task. That’s where Line 6 came in with its Relay G10T wireless system. Unlike traditional systems that require a transmitter pack, the Relay G10T is a single piece of kit that connects directly to an instrument’s input jack, no cable required.

Guitarists who’ve already purchased one of Line 6’s newest amplifiers, the Spider V, can take advantage of a limited-time opportunity to pick up a Relay G10T transmitter for free. This offer is open to U.S. customers only, and some restrictions apply. This promotion ends on July 31, 2017.

Audio production plugins. Sometimes, they come in ones and twos. Sometimes, they come preloaded with your digital audio workstation. And other times, they come in bundles. These plugin bundles can be a handy way to get more bang for your plugin buck, as plugin developers will often offer a discount on bundled purchases.

Usually, these bundles are pre-made by plugin developers. So, if you only want one or two plugins from a specific bundle, you’ve still gotta buy the whole pack. Renowned plugin maker Waves is breaking that mold, if only temporarily, by holding a special build-your-own-bundle sale, featuring many of the company’s popular audio processing tools.

The sale works like this: You pay full price for the first plugin you buy, then you get 25% off the second plugin, 30% off the third, fourth, and fifth plugins, and 40% off the sixth plugin and beyond.

Waves boasts that this sale contains more than 180 plugins, which is way too much to try and list here. Just a few of the plugins included in this sale:

If you’re into audio production (and we’re guessing that if you follow this blog, you probably are), then you love plugins. And the only thing better than the plugins you have now, is getting more plugins. Because then, you have more plugins. And as we covered above, you’re an audio producer. Who loves plugins.

The engineers at Germany’s HOFA software company understand this need for MOAR PLUGINS. That’s why they developed a plugin system called… System. Now, you know how plugins work. You add them one at a time to your tracks and then twiddle their various knobs and sliders for days at a time. And that works fine. But HOFA looked at that and thought, “Hey, Dawg. We heard you like plugins so we put more plugins in your plugins.” HOFA System itself is a plugin but it’s made up of a whole series of effects and processors that run inside System, thus giving you a plugin that’s essentially made up of other plugins.

HOFA began previewing System last year and plugin lovers cursed that they’d have to wait for an official release. But the wait is over, as System 1.5 is now officially on the street.

HOFA is offering introductory pricing for System 1.5 at $59.99 euros. This initial price point expires August 31, 2017.

You can never have enough digital audio workstations. But it can be expensive to buy more than one. That’s why it’s great when a new DAW hits the market for the super low price of FREE.

Open Labs, the makers of Stagelight, have partnered with musical equipment retailer Sam Ash to offer the digital audio workstation for free, for a limited time. Stagelight is a cross-platform application that runs on Windows, macOS, and Android (iOS version coming later this year). Open Labs describes Stagelight as:

With Stagelight, you can make beats, mix loops and create multi-track songs without ever having to leave the app. Stagelight comes with a complete sound library that includes a powerful drum machine, onscreen instruments and presets for your voice and other acoustic instruments.

Works with built-in sound cards or external audio I/O, including MIDI controllers

You can get your free copy of Stagelight by clicking the above link and following the instructions there. All that’s required for the download is a promo code (available on the linked site), a name, and an e-mail address.

The rise of digital audio production tools has forever changed the landscape of the medium. It might be fun to wax nostalgic over the recording studios of the past, with their rooms of big, bulky gear that looked really cool on photographs inside of a record sleeve. But for all their glory, those studios weren’t accessible to most. You had to be well connected and flush with cash to gain entrance. And while today it’s easier than ever to produce high quality audio with nothing more than a laptop, one thing that many producers long for is that “warm valve” tone that came naturally with all of that big, bulky gear.

Audio engineering companies have worked for decades to try and replicate the richness of valve-based gear using only software algorithms. A recent entrant to this arena is Audified with its inValve Effects plugin. This plugin includes:

The inValve Effects plugin can be used natively on Windows and macOS-based DAWs that run AAX, AU, or VST plugins. inValve Effects normally retails for $49 but the plugin is on sale for a limited time for $19.